Saturday, October 25, 2008

I haven't spent much time reflecting on my massive schlep around I-695. Okay, I have. I just haven't written much about it since I finished it up last month. But I never really gave it the closure it merits. So over the next few weeks, time and internet access permitting, I'll be writing up a few postscripts and appendices to my Snackin' around the Beltway blog post series.

In this first one, I give props to a few places that I missed on the first go round. If it seems a little heavy on the west side restaurants, it's not an accident. I noticed somewhere around Essex that by the time I had gotten some practice in this Beltway Snacking thing, I had come to be quite thorough in documenting those places I stopped at, and those places I just passed by. I didn't get that thorough at least until the mid-20's off the Beltway. So yes, you will see more stuff in and around Glen Burnie and Catonsville than you will around Towson, Essex and Dundalk. Perhaps those places most familiar to me are the ones I bothered to explore the least!

The following are in alphabetical order.

1. Cajun Blu Restaurant (Exit 7B) - I pretty much gave up on finding anything off of the BW Parkway. Had I headed into the city and stopped in Cherry Hill, I might've come across the Cajun Blu Restaurant (map). I've found no reviews for this Cajun/creole place. But hey, there was something you could only access from 295 after all!

2. How'd I miss all those places in Glen Burnie? (Exit 3B) - There were exits that I analyzed the heck out of, and exits of which I barely scratched the surface. My excursion into Glen Burnie wasn't the most thorough one. While I slurped on pho at Pho Miss Saigon I passed by more than a few places, particularly Maria D's Sub Shop right next door (map), and the Thai-Gour Café (map) right across from it (Perchi's? I've mentioned it before. Good chicken). When you're driving around Crain Highway, make sure you stop in Martitha's Mexican & Salvadoran Restaurant (map) which is almost invisible online, the Seaside Restaurant & Crabhouse (map) and the Greenhouse Grill (map). Yes, I missed a few other places. I can't mention everything, sadly.

3. Ice Cream Cottage (Exits 10 & 12A) - I've been here before. I think my sister and mother took my niece and younger sister here for an ice cream after buying their Christmas tree last year. It's easy to miss this little Ice Cream Cottage (map) across from Arbutus' fire house and next to the Arbutus Town Hall / Tackle Shop (just kidding - the closest tackle shop is in Lansdowne). Also nearby, Mike's Pizza (map) at the corner of East & Linden. I have been passing by it for years and years, since I was a child, and I still have never ventured in. Now's as good a time as any to change that.

4. Italian delis on the northeast side of town (Exits 31A & 32B) - There sure are molti, molti Italian delis near the northeastern part of the Beltway. Pastore's has not gone unmentioned. But commenters have had to bring others to my attention (the Italian 37 1/2 % of my ancestors are spinning in their graves - Mi dispiace!). And yet I still have to make it out to Mastellone's Italian Deli (map) in Parkville, not too far up Harford Road (soooo close - hat tip to Baltimore Diary). A few miles away is the northeastern branch of Route 1, which takes you into Harford County. Next time I'm around there I need to make a pit stop around Canella's (map) in Perry Hall, whose Italian Hoagie is highly recommended by commenter Chodite.

5. JAD's Caddyshack (Exit 36) - Had Exit 37 ever been completed, perhaps it would've emptied out near here. A few places in and around the Back River Neck/Middleborough part of Essex are worth mentioning, though the one I had the chance to visit is JAD's (map). I had a very good Reuben here for their lunch rush once. They also carry everything from steamed crabs and shrimp to their 10 ounce "Colossal Crab Cake". I've been told that the nearby Pizza John's (map) - not in any way affiliated with Papa John's Pizza - is a favorite with the locals.6. Kitchen of India Restaurant (Exits 30A & B) - I thought I knew where all the Indian restaurants were. Of course, I thought wrong. Kitchen of India (map) has gotten good visitor reviews, which is enough incentive to visit for me! It's right on Joppa Road in Parkville, near all the big Perring Parkway plazas, so it's easy to miss amid the car dealerships and big box stores.7. Moxley's (Exits 25, 26 and 27A) - I don't know why I haven't stopped in for ice cream at Moxley's (map) before. Most online users like the place. Moxley's has been around for years, though I rarely buy ice cream out. Maybe this is an excuse to buy some this time. They also sell ice cream cakes.

8. Oh the stuff I missed on Frederick Road! (Exit 13) - It amazes me just how many places slipped me by when I was busy stuffing my face in Catonsville with that delicious cake from Sugarbaker's and that awesome Reuben from Taneytown Deli. Just a floor up from Sam's Bagels is Little Phoenix (map), where I realized one evening that Chinese takeout is MUCH cheaper for lunch than for dinner. Little Phoenix is okay, but I'll have to go back for lunch to see how their lunch is. Further up Frederick Road, among others I hate to leave out, are the Jennings Café (map), Ships Café & Pub (map) and Matthew's 1600 (map). This last place has a popular brunch and regular holiday-themed happy hours (there's a Halloween one coming up soon). Continue west along towards Historic Ellicott City and you reach the Candlelight Inn (map) at the intersection of Rolling and Frederick Roads. A few people were surprised that I had not visited before. It's a lovely yet pricey place, good for your anniversary I would imagine. One place I could not help but miss didn't even exist when I reviewed Exit 13 - the newly opened El Nayar Mexican Restaurant (map) is in the spot where the old Pinocchio's used to be.

9. Peju's Kitchen Restaurant and Lounge (Exit 17) - Peju's (map) is a Nigerian restaurant in Woodlawn that I didn't even know about until someone at the Great Tastes Show in February recommended it to me. I still haven't stopped in yet, but since it's one of a very few West African restaurants in the area, it merits a visit soon.

10. pit beef truck, near Washington Boulevard and Lansdowne Road (Exits 9, 10) - When one thinks of Baltimore's cuisine, several things come immediately to mind. Sadly, pit beef is not one of those things, which is a shame since it's pretty good. But think about it: the pit beef stands and restaurants are everywhere, man! Sure, they're not as ubiquitous as the crabhouses, but I rarely drive a mile in or around this city without stumbling across a hot, steaming pile of pit beef. As native son Steve Raichlen puts it, it really is Baltimore's version of BBQ. One of the first that I had ever encountered is right in Lansdowne, now across from the mega Walmart that just opened up. If I remember correctly, this pit beef stand was reviewed in the City Paper a few years ago. It used to be on Route 1. Now it's up a few car lengths on Robert A Young Way, easily visible from Washington Blvd (map).11. Scittino's Italian Market (Exit 14) - Not all the Italian delis are in the northeast. Had I driven past the godawful Hunan Joy far enough, I might have found Scittino's (map). It's not like I've never been here, but it's been a while. On the order of years. As I remember it, Scittino's was a small but pretty well stocked Italian deli. I think this merits a revisit. Also nearby is the Caton Tavern (map).

12. Sea King (Exit 15A) - You know, it would be an exercise in futility to list every crab and seafood joint in the Baltimore area. The Sea King Seafood Market (map) is Catonsville's resident crab shack, almost directly across from St. Agnes Church.

13. United Crab and Seafood (Exit 18B) - I pretty much wrote off everything along Liberty Road between the Beltway and Northern Parkway. All I found was a New York Chicken. No excuse here for passing the United Crab & Seafood (map) by! An African market is somewhere across the street.

This is just a smattering of what I missed when I was coasting around the Beltway. Have I missed anything? Please post it in the comments below. But make sure I really have missed it by checking the Beltway Snacking exit posts on the right (or left if I've changed the format of this blog at some point in the future). I eagerly await y'all's input!

Places I failed to write about, whether I have since visited them or not -

2
comments:

Had lunch at El Nayar in Catonsville today. The barbacoa burrito was good, although not extraordinary. The meat was tender, the barbacoa sauce it was cooked in tasty, the lettuce crisp, the rice cooked but not to mush, the refried beans tasty. The cup of chorizo & black bean soup was excellent, the best part of the meal. The tortillas were freshly made, as was the salsa, which I appreciated.

I skipped dessert, and drank water instead of soda or tea. The bill (with tip) was $10. Both cheap and tasty. I'd definitely go back.

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